Perchance To Dream
by T'Ley
Summary: An X-Men/A Nightmare On Elm Street crossover story. Something, or someone, is attacking the Xavier students in their sleep. But then, Logan knows a thing or two about nightmares. Complete.


Rating: R (for blood, children in jeopardy, cursing, implied cursing, implied violence, and violence against children)

Spoilers: Features characters from the X-Men 2 novelization, by _**Chris Claremont**_. Kitty Pryde is "X-Men: Evolution" (2000-2003) (TV-Series) universe because she's more fun. Title references "The Twilight Zone" (1959-1965) (TV-Series) episode: "_Perchance To Dream_".

Disclaimer: The characters are not mine, except when they are. The settings and locations are not mine, except when they are. The plots, conflicts, and resolutions ARE mine, except when they're not.

Reviews/Feedback: CONSTRUCTIVE criticism is always welcome. Any suggestions you may have on how to make my story better will be greatly appreciated.

Notes/Author's Note: To Queen Serenity: I have fixed the error you pointed out. Thanks again.

They say that, if you dream you're falling off a cliff, you'll die for real when you hit bottom. Assuming you don't wake up before then.

Logan (codename Wolverine) came tearing into the girls' dormitory wing, adamantium claws extended, not long after the first scream. His heightened, mutant senses quickly zeroed in on the source of the cries; narrowing his focus down to one, specific room. Here, the man paused - just long enough to swipe the claws on his right hand through the small gap between the door and the doorframe (rather like a keycard), cleanly cutting through the lock in the process. He'd replace it later. This done, the stocky Canadian promptly burst into the room.

Thirteen-year-old Rahne Sinclair lay in bed - sprawled, haphazardly, on her back. She was in the heavy stages of REM sleep - her eyes flicking wildly back and forth beneath their lids. She was also screaming as if her life depended on it.

Logan muttered a mild curse. There was a distinctive, 'snikt' sound as the claws retracted. 'Nightmare, probably.' Logan knew a thing or two about nightmares. He knew all about the fitful tossing and turning. About waking up, in a cold sweat. Mostly, he knew about pain: pain so unbearable, so excruciating, that it wrenched your body in two till you woke with a start and sat bolt upright: muscles tense, nerves jangling, ready for a fight, expecting an attack from every angle, ready to strike at anything that moved. The thing about the pain was that it overrode your senses; which, in turn, left you vulnerable. Even when you jerked back to blessed consciousness, you felt the echoes of the pain that refused to release their grip.

Next came the tricky part. Waking a mutant was always a dicey proposition. Offhand, Logan couldn't remember what powers this girl had. As if on cue, her hands morphed into paws and her face into a dog's muzzle. The screams became howls of misery. 'Lycanthropy, right.' On the one hand, he could leave her alone. Sometimes it was easier to work through these things. The noise was a bit unnerving. Good thing the walls were thick.

Just then, something made the decision for him. As Logan watched, several series of long, thin scratches erupted on Rahne's face and cheeks. That did it. Logan grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her, hard. She woke with a jolt, lashing out: jaws snapping. "Easy, girl," Logan said. "I won't hurt you." Rahne's vision seemed to focus as she morphed back to human form and, seeing a familiar face, she crumpled, dissolving into tears. Logan still had his hands on her shoulders and managed to hold her up. "It's ok," he told Rahne. "It's over now. Come on, let's get you cleaned up." Logan tried to help her stand but her legs were still too wobbly. Making a decision, he slung the girl over his shoulder and walked out into the hall.

At that moment, Scott Summers and Jean Grey appeared at the end of the corridor. They couldn't have heard Rahne scream. As was said before, the walls were thick. However, Jean's mental powers must have alerted her to the fact that something was wrong, and being Jean, she immediately woke Scott and brought him with her to investigate. "Is she alright?" Jean called. "She's hurt, but she'll be ok." Logan answered back. "Bring her in here, Logan," came a voice from farther down the hall. This voice, however, did not speak aloud, but rather, sounded in Logan's mind. The reactions on Scott and Jean's faces indicated that they had heard it to.

Professor Charles Xavier sat in his wheelchair outside of the entrance to his private study, which was attached to his bedroom. Logan strode in, and lowered Rahne into one of the leather upholstered chairs. The rest of the group followed him inside. Scott took one look at Rahne's injuries and gave Logan a suspicious glance. Obviously the guy couldn't count. If Logan had done this, the scratches would be in sets of three (one for each of his claws). The marks on Rahne were in sets of four.

Jean, who had not followed them into the room, appeared with a large first aid kit and began carefully swabbing the scratches clean, then treated them with Neosporin, or some such disinfecting cream. "It's not too bad," she said at last. Professor Xavier wheeled around to face Rahne. "Now then," he said, "Can you tell us exactly what happened?" Rahne faltered. "I, I don't know," she stammered. "I was dreaming, at least, I think I was. But it was so real. There was a man; I couldn't see him well, he was standing in the shadows, but he had these…finger knives. He tried to kill me." Rahne clutched the arms of the chair for support. "It's alright, Rahne," the professor reassured her.

Just then, Jean noticed something. "What's that green substance under her fingernails," she asked. Logan, who had been silently deep in his own thoughts, immediately perked up. He grabbed hold of Rahne's hand, and carefully scrutinized the nails. "Looks like you got a couple of licks in yourself." Logan said. "Good girl." Jean took a sample to bring down to the lab for analysis. "Logan," the professor said sternly, "why do I have the feeling that you know more about this than you're saying." Logan looked the other man squarely in the eye. "Let's just say I have a hunch," he said.

At that very moment, Logan's heightened senses detected yet another scream piercing the air. This one was male. Logan took off for the boys' dormitory, barely noticing when Scott followed him. They both arrived at Bobby Drake's room in time to see the cuts forming on Bobby's arms, as if drawn by an invisible hand. This time, Logan didn't hesitate before waking the boy. Bobby was just getting his bearings when Logan heard another scream, a scream that he knew all too well. "Rogue!" he said aloud before dashing off again.

She was awake, and moaning in pain, when he reached her. Her face was covered in burns and blisters. Logan swore aloud. 'He'd touched her. That bastard had touched her!' Hopefully, the effects wouldn't last for long. Rogue's roommate, Jubilation Lee, was to in shock by what she was seeing to move. Logan turned to her. "You ok?" he asked. Jubilee nodded mutely. "Stay with her." Logan instructed. "I'll go get Jean."

Logan reached the hall just in time to see Jean hurrying into the professor's study. Logan raced after her. He opened the study door to find Jean presenting the professor with the lab results from the tests run on the green substance found under Rahne's fingernails. "It's blood," she said. "I can't explain it." The professor looked expectantly at Wolverine. "Logan?" he inquired. Logan faced the other man grimly. "Wake them up," he said. "Wake them all up!"

To late - another scream filled the air. But this one was significantly greater in volume and intensity. Windows cracked and a vase that was sitting on a small table in the hall shattered. Siryn. Logan quickly informed Jean of Rogue's condition before heading towards Siryn's room. As usual, he was the first on the scene. With his mutant healing factor, Logan was better able to hold out until the girl woke up or ran out of breath or both. There were no signs of Siryn's roommate Kitty Pryde. The covers on her bed were undisturbed, and Logan felt a ball of panic in his gut. 'If that son of a bitch had her, if he hurt her.' Suddenly, Logan heard a slight whimper. Kitty was curled up in a ball under the bed. She must have phased through it. Logan reached out to touch her and his hand passed through her shoulder. "Whoa, easy half pint," he reassured her. "It's just me."

Scott and Professor Xavier gathered the students together in the large common room downstairs. It seemed the whole school had been awoken by Siryn's scream; the walls were thick, but not that thick. Logan, meanwhile, had formed a plan of action. He was sure now that he knew what, or rather who, was attacking the students. Rahne and Bobby didn't have roommates at the moment. Siryn and Kitty had been attacked together. That meant that he, the attacker, having already gone after Rogue, would be coming back for Jubilee. Also, seeing as how Rogue had already absorbed some of his powers, he must be in a weakened state, which was the best time to plan an attack. "I need to borrow your room, kid." Logan told Jubilee. He also approached Jean. "I need something that'll put me out fast." That settled, he turned to the professor "Whatever you do, don't let any of them fall asleep till I get this sorted out," he advised the man. "Like, who can sleep?" Kitty quipped.

Logan stood in Rogue and Jubilee's room, moving any and all breakables a safe distance away from Jubilee's bed. Despite her injuries, Rogue herself had been moved elsewhere. As a doctor, Jean had been against moving her, but Logan had insisted on it. He didn't want Rogue there in case things took a turn for the worst.

Logan took the sleeping tablets Jean had given him and bedded down. With his mutant healing factor, the pills wouldn't last for long; but with any luck, he wouldn't need that long. The attacker shouldn't be suspicious finding a male presence in the room. What with the types of people he was used to dealing with, he would just assume that Jubilee had invited a friend to spend the night, for comfort.

Logan found himself in the dark, steamy confines of a boiler room. Moments later, he detected the scent of the man he had come to find – the scent of charred wool and burnt flesh. In this instance, Logan's minimal height would be an advantage; the attacker was expecting a teenager. Logan waited patiently while the man crept up behind him. He waited until the man was just inches away before whirling around and extending his claws. "Picking on kids again, Krueger," he said aloud. "Big mistake."

Logan woke later that night and looked around. Thanks to his earlier precautions, all in all, the damage to the room was minimal. Also, Fred Krueger would not be bothering the kids again any time soon, if at all. He was probably still putting himself back together. Logan chuckled at the mental image. All the king's horses, and all the king's men couldn't put Freddy back together again – not after last night. Logan went downstairs to check on the kids, whistling to himself.


End file.
